Smoking....bad or good!?

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Joined
Oct 11, 2013
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Can't believe I would be asking myself if cigarettes were bad or good...but lately I have been attempting to quit smoking, and I just feel extremely stressed, and slightly worse in the crohn's department. Im not noticing anything that would be considered a relapse, but its enough to make me worry. I remember during crohn's flare ups, my face would turn red in kind of a butterfly rash kind of way, but I have done tests for lupis and that wasn't the case. I have been noticing those a bit lately. I have also been getting somewhat painful bowel movements lately, but no sign of blood. Again, not really a relapse kind of thing, but just noticing some small things that werent there before quitting.

I am just worried, because I am ashamed of this bad habit, and I want to get rid of it, but I also want to keep rid of crohn's...I never want to get out of remission again. I am terrified of telling my doctor of the smoking, because I am currently on my mothers insurance, I don't want to raise her premium! She is a sweet lady, and doesn't deserve to suffer from someone elses habit.

What on earth should I do?

In case anyone asks:
1.) I have been in remission since about June of 2014
2.) I started smoking on and off in high school, and started recently about 6 months ago due to stress returning in my life. I smoke about 1-3 cigarettes per day, and sometimes 0 per day.
 
Quit now while you can.

I started when I was 13. Was going to quit when I was 30. I did for a year and a half. Started again and now I am 54.

Trust me, you don't want to be saying the same at my age, if you are still alive because of it.

It's that simple. Life or death.

Dan.
 
I also agree with Dan..... smoking is not good for anyone. Have you yet looked into any alternatives/stress relieving activities or even therapy?

I know it sounds simple, but I have gotten into the adult stress-relieving coloring books...they take my mind off everything, and you have to concentrate on what you are doing as some are quite intricate.
 
I used to smoke and then realised that before I'd finished my cigarette I'd be literally running to the toilet and didn't always make it. I don't know what it was but it really didn't like my bowels. I gave up and whilst I do still have problems I know they aren't related to me smoking. It's best to give it up I think xx
 
smoking weed is good for guts, smoking cigarettes/tobacco is BAD for guts….it is proven to be bad for crohns………so, give them up is the logical progression if you want to be as well as you can.
 
Smoking cigarettes is very bad if you have Crohn's, but apparently not if you have UC. My own father died of smoking related lung cancer in his fifties, if you have seen someone you love die of it, you would never touch another cigarette.
 
Good for UC, bad for Crohn's, I was told. Same thing with appendectomy (super interesting): Preventing UC but the probability of getting Crohn's is higher, I was told by a doctor. It's study results, so probably not just coincidence.
 
Quitting will definitely go a long way into helping you feel better but while you're in the process of quitting, you could experience gi issues that may feel familiar to mild or even moderate crohns flare. This is because your body is flushing the toxins. I suggest to keep the quit going and drink lots of fluids. You will feel much less stress in the end because you won't be feeling terrible about those cigarettes.
BTW, I'm an ex smoker so I completely understand how difficult it is.👍
 
Quit smoking, even if you have UC. It is not good for your overall health. It is bad for Crohns. Smoking is just bad news. Quit while you can. My father died of COPD. A result of his smoking.
 
If you have UC and quit smoking then it could cause you to flare so be sure to switch to another form of getting nicotine like the gum, patch etc and discuss quitting with your GI. Research is still ongoing for better ways to use nicotine as treatment for UC.

For Crohn's nicotine does the complete opposite. I used a vaporizer to help me quit smoking. I was able to slowly lower the dose until I eventually used 0mg and eventually stopped using the unit. It helped me and I believe it's worth looking into if you're serious about quitting. Invest in a decent unit if you go this route because the ones sold at gas stations or 7/11 are complete garbage and could set you back. Good luck! :)
 
Smoking gives a huge increase in flares and makes it much harder to enter into remission. Or to stay in remission of already there. Smoking #1 worst thing for crohns
 

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